Method of forming an arm rest for a chair having a tubular passageway for containing control mechanisms

ABSTRACT

A method of making a particular type of arm rest for a chair, which arm rest is made from a foamed material. Embedded in the arm rest is a flexible tube for containing a control mechanism for the chair.

BACKGROUND AND SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a particular type of arm rest for a chair,which arm rest is made from a foamed material. Embedded in the arm restis a flexible tube for containing a control mechanism for the chair. Theinvention also relates to the method of making this arm rest.

Arm rests for chairs, especially those used in recreational vehicles(RVs) and other types of recliner-type chairs, normally have controlsfor inclining the back of the chair and/or releasing the chair from itstrack for movement fore and aft. These controls extend through the armrest to a point on the arm rest adjacent the hand of the occupant of thechair.

In the past, when these arm rests were made from foam material, achannel had to be cut into the completed foamed arm rest to allow forinsertion of the control mechanism. The instant invention avoids such achanneling process into the arm rest itself.

Additionally, the previous prior art devices were quite expensive tomake as compared to the instant invention in that multiple processingsteps were required to create a finished arm rest. That is, after thearm rest had been foamed, a processing step of hollowing out had to beundertaken to provide a passageway for the control mechanisms. Then, thecontrol mechanisms had to be inserted. Subsequent to that, the areaaround the control mechanisms had to be filled with additional materialand this was difficult because of the control mechanism already locatedinternally of the cavity itself. Lastly, an area had to be created forthe facia plate which would house the control element.

The previously well known channeling process required some sort offiller material (normally the foam cut out during channeling) to besubsequently placed into the arm rest to fill the cavity created afterthe arm rest had been hollowed out to allow for the insertion of thecontrol mechanism. This previous process had major draw backs. The firstof these was the time and expense to create the channeling andindentation for the control arm indicia plate. This is normallydifficult since the channel is not completely straight and it isdifficult to cut into the foam neatly. One must be careful not to tearthe outer edges of the arm rest or to otherwise cause delaminating ofthe molded arm. Secondly, the material that was added to the hollowedout cavity created imperfections in the foamed arm rest which could benoticeable to the user after covering of the foam rest with some sort offabric. Thirdly, it was difficult to get any uniform density of fullermaterial back into the channel and lastly refilling was time consuming.

Applicant's invention does away with this multiple step process andallows for the creation of a arm rest with but a single foaming step. Inthis regard, a two piece mold was created and the mold had formedthereon a nipple for attachment to a tube. The control mechanism issubsequently inserted into the tube after the arm rest is created. Thetube was slipped on to this nipple prior to any foaming process stepoccurring. The other end of the tube was attached to a second nipplemounted on a facia mounting insert, which insert is securelypositionable at an outer surface of the mold. The tube, as attached tothe insert, need only be slightly longer than the distance between thetwo nipples to allow for the insertion. The insert is placed in aninsert recess in the mold, and the mold is filled and closed tosolidify. The attachment of the tube to the nipple on the insert canoccur either before or after the insert is placed in the insert recessin the mold. The mold can then be filled with the material used forcreating the foamed arm rest and the material solidified. After the foamhas solidified, the mold is opened and the arm rest is removed from themold. The insert piece is retained with the arm and is separated fromthe arm after the arm is lifted out of the mold.

In this process, the proper placement of the insert piece at the outerperimeter(s) of the mold forms becomes critical, since the insert pieceplacement defines in the finished arm rest, the location of a faciaplate housing the manipulative element for the chair control.

Applicant has created a particular series of mold forms to solve insertplacement problems. The mold comprises two mold forms hinged togetheralong their longitudinal edge so as to be able to be opened and closedin a "book-like" fashion. Each mold has a cavity, and the two cavitieshave substantially identical edge areas which are juxtaposed in theclosed position of the mold to create a single large mold form areawhich defines the metes and bounds of the arm rest. The cavities in eachmold form have a length, width and depth. The arm rest will have as itsfinal dimensions a length and width equal to the length and width ofeach cavity and a height equal to the sum of the depths of the twocavities.

The inset is located in the mold dependent on where the facia plate isto be located on the arm rest. Normally, the facia plate is located:centrally at an end of the arm rest, on the inner or outer side of thearm rest, or along the top of the arm rest.

When it is desired that the facia plate be located in the end of the armrest, the insert is placed in an insert opening located at one end edgeof the bottom mold form along its width direction. The insert has aplate portion which slides into the opening. A cooperating plate portionopening is located on the other mold form to enclose that upper portionof the plate when the mold is closed.

Dependent upon the exact location of the indicia on the end of the armrest and the thickness of the mold sections, the plate can be fullyinserted into the opening in the bottom mold or only partially inserted.In the latter situation, the portion of the plate extending above theopening must have a rounded corner (located opposite the hinge) and thecooperating plate portion opening must have a curved area to allow forthe mold to pivot shut over the upper edge of the plate portion.Alternatively, both openings can be cavities surrounding the plate, withthe upper cavity being large enough to clear the plate as the mold ismoved to closed position and wherein edges of these two cavities abut atthe top of the insert piece portion which defines the facia insertcavity in the arm rest to seal off the mold cavity about the insertpiece.

When the indicia area is to be located on one side of the arm rest, theinsert piece without the aforementioned plate piece can be located torest on the bottom of the mold cavity at its proper position. When theindicia is to be located on the other side of the mold arm rest, it canbe secured to a reinforcement member so that it is raised high enough toabut the top of the mold when the mold is folded shut. In this manner,the insert has the tube connected to it prior to filling and closing offthe mold forms together. Alternatively, the mold can be turned over sothat the other side of the mold now rests on the bottom and the formerbottom side becomes the top side.

When it is desirable to place the indicia on the top edge of the armrest, the inset with the plate portion expedient can be used, only herethe cooperating openings will be located along the longitudinal edge ofthe mold, opposite the hinge edge, and not the end edge of the mold asindicated for an arm rest end location for the indicia.

After the arm rest has solidified, the mold is opened. The end of thearm rest further from the fixed nipple is lifted upwards enough to clearthe edge of the mold facing the nipple. The arm rest is then slid awayfrom the nipple, allowing the tube to become disconnected therefrom. Thearm rest can then be lifted out of the mold. When the arm rest has asufficient height and the mold is sufficiently deep, the fixed nipplecan be oriented in a more vertical direction without the problem of thetube collapsing due to sharp bending, and under such a circumstance, thesliding movement can be occasioned with a lifting movement at the sametime. Normally, however, a substantially horizontal or more horizontalorientation of the nipple is desired so that the flexture of the tubeitself holds the tube onto the nipple.

The insert plate portion can be made wide enough in the width directionof the mold so that the molded arm rest can be lifted or tilted slightlyupward and then pulled outward of the mold without clearing the facingmold surfaces that join upon closing. In this configuration, the openingfor the plate portion has but a small lip on its outside bottom edge.Once the plate clears the lip, it can be slid enough such that the tubeon the nipple that is attached to the mold can be slid off the fixednipple, and the foamed arm rest with the tube attached to the insertembedded therein can still be removed from the mold. When the insert isthen separated from the mold, it leaves a cavity for an indicia or faciaplate. The tube is thus fully encased with the foam material. At thatpoint, a Bowden wire or some other mechanism can be slid down the tubestarting at the indicia cavity and out the end of the tube previouslyattached to the fixed nipple for use as a control element to activatethe reclining mechanism of the arm seat and/or the seat track releasingmechanism. The foamed arm rest can be covered either before or duringthe process of insertion of the control element and/or attachment of thefacia plate.

As indicated, the insert can be located at the tip of the arm of the armrest or at a top, bottom or side position depending o where the controlsare desired to be located. For example, in airplane arm rests, thecontrols are quite often located on the inside area of the arm adjacentto the passenger seated on the seat. Alternatively, the controls couldbe located on the top of the arm; e.g., the ashtray location of such anairplane seat.

Additionally, one normally provides reinforcing members internally ofthe mold prior to the foaming process. These reinforcing members can bebar stiffeners, and/or they can be pivot mountings. For example, armrests quite often pivot at their rear end to the seat back, and undersuch a construction, a pivot sleeve or sleeve opening could be foamedinto the arm rest at the same time the arm rest is created. Anadditional feature can be obtained by having the reinforcing member actas a slide on which the insert can move and be firmly attached. In thismanner, the position of the insert with respect to the finished arm canbe located at a point specified on the reinforcing member. As indicatedpreviously, the insert can slide on the reinforcement member and belocated at a sufficient height to abut the top of the mold to allow forthe indicia opening to be located at an area on the top side of themold. Normally, one uses a reinforcement member because the foamed armis not strong enough without it. However, dependent on the material usedfor foaming, use of the reinforcement member is not necessarilymandatory.

The reinforcing member is normally secured to the mold form itself,although where an end located and secured insert is provided, it couldbe secured to the end insert, such a reinforcement member normally has apositioning pin extending through the bottom of the mold. To release themolded arm after solidification, the pin is pushed upwardly out of thebottom of the mold at the same time the insert is raised to clear itsattachment lip, and then the molded arm is slid to release the tube.

Of importance in designing the size of the insert is the concept ofcreating a mold which does not lock-in the foamed arm rest. Note that inthe invention, the foamed arm rest desirably moves somewhat away fromthe fixed nipple so that the tube can slide off the nipple that isattached to one side of the mold. Alternatively, if it was desired tohave the mold be extremely deep, the nipple attached to the mold itselfcould be oriented vertically so that the molded arm could be lifteddirectly upwardly, or at least more vertically such that a sliding andlifting motion would be used to uncouple the tube from the fixed nipple.Under such a construction, the insert would slide vertically upwardlywith the arm as it is removed.

Another feature contemplated to keep the arm from being locked in themold is to have the molds with varying depths as they go from one endarea to the other end area. In this regard, the top mold would have itslargest depth step at the front and a very minor depth step at the rear,while the bottom mold would be reversed thereto. Thus, when the top moldis removed, the bottom mold would allow for an easy sliding out of thefoamed chair arm. The uneven height feature could occur from the hingeedge outwardly; i.e., at right angles to that previously described.

One can use either injection molding or open fill molding. The open filltype can utilize a two compound type foaming material, one apolyether-polyoyl resin blend, and the other a polymethylenepolyphenylisocyante. These two materials are combined in a high pressurefeed impact dosing machine and deposited in the open mold. One then hasabout 15-20 sec. cream time to close the mold and invert it such thatits vent holes 27 are located at the top. The material solidifies inabout 3 minutes and then the mold can be opened.

Other objects, advantages and novel features of the present inventionwill become apparent from the following detailed description of theinvention when considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a plan view of two sections of the mold without the controltube being inserted therein, and without the insert being insertedtherein;

FIG. 2 is a sectional view of the mold of FIG. 1 taken generally alongthe line II--II thereof, wherein the insert and the tube are shown, andwherein the various portions of the mold are shown separated injuxtaposed position;

FIG. 3 is an end view of the molded arm itself showing the area for thefacia plate after the insert has been removed;

FIG. 4 shows the mold construction of FIG. 1 wherein there is areinforcing member insert and tube located in the mold;

FIG. 5 shows the mold construction of FIG. 1 wherein a reinforcingmember acting as a slider for the insert is provided;

FIG. 6 shows the mold construction of FIG. 1 showing a rotary supportfor the arm rest and the tube therein;

FIG. 7 shows a modified configuration in the closed position and whereinthe depth varies from side to side;

FIG. 8 shows an enlarged view of the insert;

FIG. 9 shows an enlarged view of the fixed nipple;

FIG. 10A shows an enlarged view of one opening modification housing theinsert; and

FIG. 10B shows the curvature of the plate and upper opening to allowclosing of the mold.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring now to the drawings where like reference numerals are used todesignate like elements, and in particular, referring to FIG. 1 whereina plan view of a two part mold is shown having a first mold form 1hingedly connected at 5 to a second mold form 2. The second mold part 2has a nipple 4 fixedly located at its bottom cavity portion. At itsouter edge to the left of FIGS. 1 and 2 there is located a lippedaperture opening 9 into which an insert 7 can be placed. The aperturehas a recess 21 adjacent lip 6 to receive the insert 7 (see FIG. 10).The lip holds the bottom of the insert from moving to the left as viewedin FIGS. 1 and 10. The insert 7 has located thereon a second nipple 8. Aplastic tube 3 is provided which has a length substantially equal to thedistance between the nipples 4 and 8 after the insert 7 has been locatedin the aperture 9. The insert 7 has a hood portion 15 surrounding thenipple 8 which determines a recess 16 created in the molded plastic arm.This indicia or facia recess is created by the hood 15 surrounding thesecond nipple 8.

The second mold form has a cooperating recess 22 to receive the upperend of the insert 7. As shown in FIGS. 11A and 11B, the insert 7 musteither have a rounded edge 7' or the recess 22 must be rounded or atleast enlarged as shown hatched at 22' to allow the cover 1 to pivotover the insert 7. The shaded area needs to be filled after the cover 1is closed. This could be by insert block or it could be a tab on thebottom mold 2.

In making the foam arm for the chair, the insert 7 is positioned intothe recess 9 and then a tube 3 is fitted on to the two nipples 4 and 8,or the tube is attached to nipple 8 and then the insert 7 is positionedinto recess 9. One would normally then place into the mold areinforcement member (as will be explained later), and the material usedfor the foaming step is then created by mixing the two cooperatingconstituents. The mold is then closed by rotating the upper portion 1about its hinge 5. The mold is then tilted upwardly after being filledwith foam material and the foam material is allowed to solidify with thegas from the solidifying process escaping out the tiny vent holes 27(located at the right edge of mold foam 2 in FIG. 1). Thus one creates areinforced arm rest surrounding the tube 3. After solidification of thefoam material in the mold, the cover 1 is again hingedly opened and thesolidified molded arm is slightly lifted upwardly at the edge of theorifice 9 to the point where the insert 7, which is retained on the moldis raised above the lip 6 of the recess 21 at opening 9 and the pin 30on the reinforcement insert (to be explained later) clears the moldcavity 2, and then the solidified molded arm is able to slide to theleft as viewed in FIG. 2, such that the tube, which is embedded in thesolidified molded arm, slides off nipple 4. At this point, thesolidified molded arm can then be lifted from the mold. Then, the insert7 is removed from the solidified molded arm, leaving a recess 16 (seeFIG. 3) formed by the hood 15 in the molding process, which recessaccommodates a facia plate for the control mechanism which will be fedthrough the tube 3 embedded in the solidified molded arm.

In this manner, a chair arm is created in a single step foaming process.This foaming process produces a foam chair arm having a reinforcement, arecess 16 and a hollow tube 3 for accommodating a control mechanism suchas a Bowden cable therein. A chair arm, of course, can be finished inany sort of fabric which can be placed around the foam product at thesame time, prior to or after insertion of the control mechanism andfacia plate into the tube 3.

By this process, the previous method of hollowing out a foamed arm tocontain an area for the control mechanism does not have to be followed.The invention thus produces a uniform arm rest made from a singlefoaming process with the tubular control passageway located therein. Theweakening of the arm by carving out or molding an open access area forthe control mechanism and the expense in time and labor, as occasionedby prior art devices does not occur. Furthermore, a uniform appearancefor the arm throughout its periphery is obtained.

As indicated previously, it is desired to have the solidified molded armreinforced, a reinforcing rod made out of metal or plastic such as isshown in FIG. 4 by element 23 can be inserted into the mold prior to thetime of foaming. The reinforcement end is securely positioned in themold by means of an ejection pin extending through the bottom of themold. See pin 30 (FIG. 4) and surrounding pin hole 31. Thisreinforcement could also provide for the pivot bearing surface for thearm. This reinforcing member can act as a track for positioning theaforementioned insert 7. The insert 7 could be a slider insert 10slidable on the reinforcement 23 in FIG. 5 when a side mounting for thecontrols of the arm is desired. This slider insert would form the recessin the molded arm and would contain the nipple 8. The assemblage at FIG.5 also provides that the second end of the tube can be placed anywherealong the side of the arm rest, as opposed to the end portion as shownin FIGS. 1-3. Additionally, a pivot support 11 could be located in themold so as to be enclosed by the foam during the process of making thearm. This pivot support 11 could be a cylinder sleeve to hold arotatable pivot arm for the arm of the chair. Alternatively, the supportcan be retained in the mold and leave an opening for an arm rest pivotmechanism. The latter situation is the more normal use. It is shownadjacent the stiffener arm 23, but it could be a part of the stiffenerarm.

With the slider located on the side as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, itsretention in the solidified arm does not cause any special problems inallowing sliding of the solidified arm to remove the tube 3 from thefixed nipple 4. The pin 30 on the reinforcement member is still pushedupwardly through its hole 31 to clear the bottom of the mold, prior toshifting of the molded are to release the fixed nipple.

FIG. 6 shows a mold for an arm having a side mounted control panel, andalso includes a ratchet plate 17 which cooperates with the bearingmember 11'. In this construction, the bearing member and the ratchetplate would be put on the opposite side walls of the solidified moldedarm, and thus would be located one in each side of the mold form.Alternatively, they could be attached to the mold form and only leave anindentation for latter insertion of the bearing and/or ratchet plate. Inthis FIG. 6 type operation, a reinforcing member 9, such as is shown inFIG. 4 or member 23 as is shown in FIG. 5 could additionally be used.

In order to provide for easy removal of the foamed arm aftersolidification, the mold forms utilized for creating the arm can be ofthe type shown in FIG. 7, wherein the two mold forms 1' and 2' haveunequal depth cavities therein. These cavities are shown by the angledexterior lines in FIG. 7. In this type of construction, the shallowpoint of one cavity opposes the greater depth of the other cavity. Thus,when the mold is opened, the foamed arm can be lifted just slightly overthe shallow end of mold 2' (at the point adjacent the insert), with thepin 30 of the reinforcement member clearing the bottom of the mold form(as it passes through its hole 31) and slid leftwardly to remove it fromthe mold. This type of mold can also be used with an end located insert.Here, the plate 7' surrounding the insert will have to be curved (FIG.11A) or the recess curved as shown at 22' in FIG. 11B. The recess 22'could be rectangular. All that is needed is enough space for the hingedcover to pass over the plate 7. This recess 22' will have to be filledeither with a spacer block or a rounded tab portion on the mold form 2.

The longer the opening 9 (FIG. 1) is made, the easier it is to removethe solidified molded arm from the mold form. When the length equals thefull width of the solidified molded arm, the arm can be easily shiftedto the left as shown in FIG. 1.

While no material has been specified for the tube, it is generallyeasier to use a plastic tube such as polyethlene which has flexibilityand some rigidity. A rubber or metal tube could be used.

Alternatively, the mold could be made more trapezoidal, such that itcould be easily slid out from the wide end of the trapezoid. Thistrapezoidal shaped feature could also be provided as an adjunct to thedifferent depth mold shown in FIG. 7.

While the reinforcement pin has been shown penetrating the bottom of themold cavity adjacent the fixed nipple, it can be located elsewhere,including being located on the insert. Having it in the bottom, however,assists in the removal function since it can be pressed upwards throughthe hole in the bottom of the mold at the same time as the insert israised and prior to sliding off of the tube.

Although the present invention has been described and illustrated indetail, it is to be clearly understood that the same is by way ofillustration and example only, and is not to be taken by way oflimitation. The spirit and scope of the present invention are to belimited only by the terms of the appended claims.

What is claimed:
 1. A process for molding a foam arm for a chair havinga tubular passageway for the passage of control mechanisms through thearm, comprising the steps of:providing a mold having a cavity and with anipple located on an inner surface of the mold cavity; attaching one endof a tube to said nipple; securing another end of the tube to an insertand positioning said insert into a recess located at an outer edge ofsaid cavity; filling said cavity with a solidifiable material; closingsaid mold; allowing the material to solidify to create an arm rest withan inserted tube; and then opening said mold and removing the arm restby first lifting said arm rest upwardly at said outer edge to a pointwhere said insert is raised above a lip of said recess, then slidingsaid one end of said tube off said nipple and finally lifting said armrest form the mold.
 2. The process of claim 1, wherein the securing ofthe other end of the tube is by attachment of the tube to a removableinsert located at the edge of the cavity surface.
 3. The process ofclaim 2, wherein the removable insert remains attached to the arm restas it is removed from the mold cavity.
 4. The process of claim 3,wherein the removable insert is removed from the arm rest after removalfrom the mold.
 5. The process of claim 2, wherein the solidifiablematerial is placed around the removable insert and its securingconnection to form a recess in the arm rest.
 6. The process of claim 1,including the step of placing a reinforcement member into the mold priorto the filling step.
 7. The process of claim 6 including the step ofpeggingly securing the reinforcement member to the mold after theplacing step and prior to the filling step.
 8. The process of claim 7,wherein the arm rest is removed from the mold cavity by lifting the armrest out of the mold through the step of pushing on the peggedconnection of the reinforcement member to the mold form and wherein thislifting step takes place prior to sliding the tube off the nippleinsert.
 9. The process of claim 1, wherein a removable insert ispositioned in the mold cavity by securing it to a reinforcement member.10. The process of claim 2, wherein the removable insert is positionedin the mold cavity by securing it to a reinforcement member.
 11. Theprocess of claim 1, wherein the step of moving the arm rest from themold is made easier by having the mold cavity formed by two mold forms,each form having a depression therein, and wherein the depressions faceeach other to define the mold cavity, and wherein the depressions aregraduated in depth along one dimension of the respective mold form froma shallow end to a deep end, and wherein the deep end of one mold formis adjacent the shallow end of the other mold form and wherein theremoval process includes opening of the mold and lifting an end of thearm rest at the shallow end so it clears the mold prior to sliding offthe tube from the nipple.
 12. The process of claim 2, wherein the stepof moving the arm rest from the mold is much easier by having the moldcavity formed by two mold forms, each form having a depression therein,and wherein the depressions face each other to define the mold cavity,and wherein the depressions are graduated in depth along one dimensionof the respective mold form from a shallow end to a deep end, andwherein the deep end of one mold form is adjacent the shallow end of theother mold form and wherein the removal process includes opening of themold and lifting an end of the arm rest at the shallow end so it clearsthe mold prior to sliding off the tube from the nipple.
 13. A processfor molding a foam arm for a chair having a tubular passageway for thepassage of control mechanisms through the arm, comprising the stepsof:providing a mold having a cavity and with a nipple located on aninner surface of the mold cavity; placing a reinforcement member intothe mold; attaching one end of a tube to said nipple; securing anotherend of the tube to an insert and securing the insert to thereinforcement member; sliding the insert on the reinforcement member toa desired position; filling said cavity with a solidifiable materialclosing said mold; allowing the material to solidify to create an armrest with an inserted tube; and then opening said mold and removing thearm rest.